Large capacity boat lifts typically employ a lift platform having a plurality of transverse cradle beams that carry bunk assemblies for engaging and supporting the hull of the vessel. It is critical that the bunks be properly positioned to support the boat in a level manner on the lift. Sailboats and heavy vessels exhibit a wide variety of hull sizes and contours. As a result, the bunks of a standard lift tend to engage different vessels at different locations and angles. Uniformly level support is virtually impossible to achieve. Therefore, each large capacity boat lift typically must be custom manufactured to position the bunks in a suitable manner so that level support is provided for the particular boat with which the lift will be used. Specifically, the bunks are supported by stanchions which must be measured, predrilled and assembled individually for each customer. Before the lift is constructed, the manufacturer must carefully and accurately ascertain the precise specifications of the customer's vessel.
The foregoing technique is tedious, time consuming, costly and inefficient. If the specifications are measured incorrectly or if the customer elects to use a different vessel with the lift, the originally installed bunk positioning must be changed. This usually requires time consuming and expensive reconstruction of the lift. After the position is initially set, it is virtually impossible to adjust on site. For that reason, the large capacity boat lifts which are currently available are normally suited for use with only one type of vessel. This limits the versatility and usefulness of the lift considerably. Custom lift construction must be performed for virtually each type of vessel. If the boater later decides to change vessels, time consuming and costly retrofitting of the lift must be performed.